Traditional Kenya Earth Color Basket - Open
Bold, durable and made to be carried, the open-top Traditional Kenya Earth Color Basket pairs everyday utility with real artisan tradition.
Each basket is hand-dyed and handwoven in Kenya from strong, sustainable sisal, the fiber of the sisal (cactus) plant, then finished with leather. The result is a one-of-a-kind pattern in warm, earthy colors. This is the open-top version, with no zipper, so it opens wide as a market basket or storage tote. Every piece is fairly traded and supports the weaver who made it.
Carry it to the farmers market, load it with yarn or toys as handsome storage, or stand it in a corner as a woven accent. As a Kenya sisal basket it is as tough as it is beautiful.
You will receive one handwoven basket, roughly 16 to 18 inches in diameter and 12 to 13 inches tall, in an assorted earth-tone colorway. Materials: sisal and leather.
Product Size: Approximately 16-18 inches in diameter x 12-13 inches Deep
Weaving Details
These basket weavers demonstrate amazing patience and concentration as they create each beaded wire basket. They string tiny colored glass beads on wire in meticulous fashion to create the patterns.
The only tool that the weavers use is a pair of pliers to manipulate and cut the wire. Most patterns are created from ideas the weavers have. Sometimes they will sketch an idea on paper and then try to reproduce it as a basket.
These baskets are traditionally given as gifts. For example, the bowls are given from mother to daughter at her wedding ceremony to symbolize the woman’s ability to care for husband and family.
The small lidded containers are given from grandmothers to granddaughters at the wedding. The baskets hold bracelets and earrings that mark her status as a newly married woman.
Beaded Wire Baskets in Kenya
The weavers come from both the Maasai and Kikiyu cultures and are located North of Nairobi, Kenya. Two dozen weavers have organized into this group to skillfully create these baskets.
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